Blind law school grad turns 'the world on its head'

Robert Dittman studies for the Texas Bar Exam, accompanied by his dog, Snickers, at Buon Giorno on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012. Dittman has many accomplishments to his credit, despite his blindness.

Photo By Courtesy/ Melanie Davis and St.

Charles Cantu, dean of St. Maryâ€™s Universityâ€™s School of Law, honors Robert Dittman, 35, for completing his law degree and presents his seeing-eye dog Snickers with a bone and a certificate and called him â€˜the most popular student in law schoolâ€™ at ceremony Dec. 8, 2012. Dittman is blind but aspires to become a military attorney. Photo credit: Melanie Davis and St. Maryâ€™s University

Photo By Billy Calzada/San Antonio Express-News

Robert Dittman, who recently graduated from St. Mary's School of Law, studies for the state bar exam at Buon Giorno on Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2012. Dittman has faced obstacles because of his blindness. â€œWhen the world tells you, â€˜No,â€™ turn the world on its head,â€ he said.

Surviving law school would be a proud achievement for anybody. But for Robert Dittman, who classmates nicknamed “Blind Justice,” it's not just his latest degree. It's a necessary step toward a dream he may still have to fight for: Landing a job as a military attorney.

The sky-diving, competitive-wrestling, Eagle-Scouting, U.S. Coast Guard volunteer lost most of his sight as a result of being born premature and the remainder after a wrestling blow to the head as a teen.

Dittman, 35 has a simple philosophy for handling tough scenarios: “When the world tells you, 'No,' turn the world on its head.”

On Dec. 8, he became one of two dozen St. Mary's University law students receiving their doctoral hoods, signifying degree completion. His seeing-eye dog Snickers, a docile chocolate Labrador retriever, earned a bone from the dean for his efforts as well.

“Snickers went through law school, too, so it was just fair,” said Reynaldo Valencia, the law school's associate dean for administration and finance. “He had to do those long hours with Rob here.”

Dittman and Snickers are already buckling down to study for the bar exam in February. Law school staff can recall just one other blind student graduating from the program, and that was more than a decade ago, Valencia said.

Dittman credits the school with going well beyond what's required by the Americans with Disabilities Act to help him succeed.

It spent thousands of dollars on a Braille printer and other technology, assigned a staff member to ensure he had materials in a format he could access and let him use a room in the library to study and for Snickers to relax off-duty, Valencia said.

“We are a Catholic Marianist university, and if there is something we should do for a student with particular needs, we do it,” he said, adding that the energetic Dittman responded in kind.

While in law school, Dittman studied international issues in Innsbruck, Austria. He acted as a student attorney at the school's Center for Legal and Social Justice in San Antonio — working with clients on divorces, consumer protection cases and foreclosures. And he worked as a legal “extern” for the U.S. Coast Guard, assisting with courts-martial proceedings and other cases.

So he tried to think of a skill he could acquire that the military would always need.

“It's so funny. So many people want out of the military, and I've been working for 17 years to get in,” said Dittman, who has worked for years with the volunteer U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and other military organizations. “I believe in the values of officership.”

Dittman said the military should consider giving him a medical waiver because the armed forces have allowed service members visually impaired while on duty to continue to serve and because he's been doing the job as a volunteer already.

His efforts have elicited recommendations from the likes of law professors and Coast Guard officers.

“We admire very much his desire to serve his country,” said Cornyn's spokeswoman Jessica Sandlin in an email.

Despite these appeals, Dittman received a response letter from the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense saying his medical condition would “limit the duties and missions of a uniformed officer” and urging him to consider civilian employment with the Defense Department instead.

“While many of these people have otherwise outstanding qualifications, they are unable to serve,” department spokesman Nate Christensen said in an email. “Individuals who are physically disqualified for military duty can and do become civilian members of the team. The work they perform for the department and our country is valuable and rewarding but without the rigors of military duty.”

Christensen said about 35 percent of those who want to join the military are disqualified because of a physical condition.

But Dittman has not given up.

He said the military should not allow soldiers who were visually impaired during combat to serve on active duty “without completely and utterly looking into my blindness as well,” he said, drawing a correlation to other groups that have been barred from service in the past — minorities, women and gays.